Living the bomb: Martin Amis's nuclear fiction

Rebecca L Bostick, University of Nevada, Las Vegas

Abstract

Living the Bomb: Martin Amis's Nuclear Fiction examines the importance of nuclear issues in Amis's fiction, particularly Einstein's Monsters and London Fields. Critical attention is given to Amis's concept of "thinkability," his political agenda and the effect of nuclear weaponry on his literature. Amis's nuclear symbolism is examined and the corrupt effect of nuclear weapons on our powers of creation (literal and artistic) and the environment is illustrated. Finally, Amis's anti-nuclear philosophy is linked with feminism: both espouse pacifism and a reinventing of gender roles in a post-nuclear world.